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A CTE Home Run

WASHINGTON, D.C. | September 2, 2016

When Jasmine Morgan began her freshman year at Brookwood High School in Snellville, Georgia, a teacher recognized Jasmine’s talents and encouraged her to enroll in the marketing and entrepreneurship courses the school offered through its career and technical education (CTE) program. Jasmine quickly flourished in her program—even taking on leadership roles—and began to envision a career path for herself.

Through her coursework, Jasmine demonstrated an innate knack for branding, and a class trip to the Atlanta Braves headquarters really “hit it home,” helping her realize she could pursue a career in sports marketing.

Jasmine continued her studies at Mississippi State University, and today, she is a sports marketing specialist for the company that owns the Atlanta Braves Radio Network. Jasmine says her CTE experience was incredibly important in helping her explore career possibilities and putting her on a path to success:

The hands-on experience really made me believe I could do all of these things well. Somewhere along the way, I thought, “Gosh, I’m really good at this” – and it was something I really loved ... You can draw a pretty straight line from those early marketing classes to where I am today. Those career education programs gave me an opportunity not just to learn things, but to do things.

CTE programs like the one at Brookwood High School have the power to open the eyes of students to a variety of career opportunities and help them acquire the knowledge and skills they need to seize those opportunities. That’s why Reps. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) and Katherine Clark (D-MA) introduced—and the committee unanimously approved—the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 5587). This bipartisan bill will improve support for career and technical education by empowering state and local community leaders, improving alignment with in-demand jobs, and increasing transparency and accountability, among other positive reforms.

More importantly, these commonsense solutions will help Americans like Jasmine gain the hands-on experience they need to hit a career home run.

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